Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said on Thursday Egypt will always remain a supporter of Somalia, asserting that they will work together to achieve further accomplishments and stressing that Somalia’s security and stability are an integral part of Egypt’s national security.
At a joint press conference with Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President Sisi underlined the importance of stepping up efforts to preserve peace and security in the Horn of Africa region that has an impact on global security.
He said that he agreed with his Somali counterpart on the importance of holding another tripartite summit grouping Egypt, Somalia and Eritrea to enhance partnership, citing the progress achieved by Asmara summit in 2024 in achieving a turning point in relations between the three countries.
The summit saw discussions focusing on boosting coordination towards regional issues as part of keenness on supporting sisterly Somalia as a cornerstone for realizing stability in the Horn of Africa, the president also said.
Sisi added that talks with his Somali counterpart tackled the latest regional developments, including the political and security situation in the Horn of Africa region as well as the Red Sea security.
Sisi welcomed the Somali president, saying his visit to Egypt reflects the strong and deep-rooted relations between the two countries, stressing that the visit comes at a time relations between Egypt and Somalia are witnessing a major development.
Sisi said this is the fourth meeting grouping him with the Somali president since January 2024, adding that today meeting aims at materializing the aspirations of the two sisterly nations.
He said he agreed with the Somali president on maintaining joint efforts in implementation of the military cooperation protocol signed between the two countries in August 2024 to boost the capabilities of the Somali state and its national institutions in preserving peace and security and combating terrorist and extremist organizations.
Sisi said talks tackled in details Egyptian forces’ participation in the new African Union mission in Somalia, adding that the move aims only at achieving security and stability in Somalia and does not seek to pose any threat to any country.
Egypt’s participation in the AU mission is positive and mainly aims at demonstrating solidarity with the brethren in Somalia, he said.
He referred to the joint political declaration he signed today with the Somali president to upgrade relations to a strategic partnership covering political, military, cultural and economic axes.
Under the declaration, the two countries will hold annual political consultations at a summit level to follow up on developments of bilateral relations and explore ways to further enhance these relations.
Sisi said he witnessed with his Somali president the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two countries’ foreign ministries in the field of diplomatic training, as well as an agreement to exchange exemptions from entry visas for holders of diplomatic passports from both countries in a way that enhances the mechanisms of political consultations and coordination between Egypt and Somalia.
Sisi said talks between both sides tackled progress realized in the economic field after the launch of EgyptAir flights between Cairo and Mogadishu, adding that they agreed on the need to maintain the current momentum and further strengthen bilateral relations within the coming period through taking additional measures to foster cooperation in the areas of health, justice and capacity building.
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